bacterial intelligence shown to be DNA driven (Animals)

by David Turell , Thursday, November 30, 2017, 15:28 (2549 days ago) @ David Turell

A new study shows that by changing the DNA code bacteria do what they are told by the DNA they are given:

https://phys.org/news/2017-11-dna-alphabet-cells-proteins.html

"Scientists are expanding the genetic code of life, using man-made DNA to create a semi-synthetic strain of bacteria—and new research shows those altered microbes actually worked to produce proteins unlike those found in nature.

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"A team at The Scripps Research Institute in La Jolla, California, expanded the genetic alphabet, creating two artificial DNA "letters" called X and Y. A few years ago, the researchers brewed up a type of E. coli bacteria commonly used for lab research that contained both natural DNA and this new artificial base pair—storing extra genetic information inside cells.

"The next challenge: Normal DNA contains the coding for cells to form proteins that do the work of life. Could cells carrying this weird genomic hybrid work the same way?

"Sure enough, the altered cells glowed green as they produced a fluorescent protein containing unnatural amino acids, researchers reported Wednesday in the journal Nature.

"'We can make proteins that are built of more things than they normally are," explained Scripps chemist Floyd Romesberg, who leads the project.

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"That's an ultimate goal in the field of synthetic biology—designing organisms that work differently from the way nature intended so scientists can harness them to create designer drugs, biofuels or a range of other products.

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"The new work traced the biological steps as the altered E. coli read the artificial genetic code and assembled the pieces for a new protein, with the same efficiency as if using normal DNA.

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"This bacterial strain was "modified in a really dramatic and unusual way at these positions in its genome," Boeke said. "And that's what makes it different from every other organism on the planet today.'"

Comment: It cannot be denied that the new DNA made these bacteria act automatically to produce a new protein! Substitute God for human scientists doing the bacterial programming and it is easy to accept my point of view. Bacterial 'thinking' is simply programmed responses to stimuli.